Iran is ready to help "train" the Syrian army if Damascus asks for such assistance, a top military chief was quoted as telling official news agency, IRNA, on Sunday.

In remarks reported by IRNA, the commander of the Islamic republic's army ground forces, General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan, said: "As a Muslim nation, we back Syria, and if there is need for training we will provide them with the training."

However, Pourdastan said the Iranian military "won't have any active involvement in the operations," emphasizing that the Syrian army has "accumulated experience during years of conflict with the Zionist regime (Israel) and is able to defend itself and doesn't need foreign assistance."